Sister of Dorjee Tashi detained and assaulted by police

Gonpo Kyi, the sister of Tibetan political prisoner Dorjee Tashi, has been arrested while protesting for her brother’s release.

Sources report that, on 20 March 2023, Lhasa police forcibly removed Gonpo Kyi from outside the Tibet Higher People’s Court and detained her for a night at Lhasa Beijing Middle Road Police Station. During this time, she was beaten and sustained an injury to her right arm.

The day following her arrest, her elder brother, Dorjee Tseten, visited the police station where she was being held and demanded that she be taken to a hospital. Following a visit to the hospital, she was released from police custody.

In a video seen by Tibet Watch, Gonpo Kyi shows the injury to her arm, as well as the protest slogans written on her shirt and some posters. These slogans read: “Tibet Higher People’s Court perverts the law, Dorjee Tashi is innocent,” alongside a call for Dorjee Tashi’s case to be reviewed. She also shows the police station where she was detained.

Gonpo Kyi and Dorjee Tseten have tirelessly protested their brother’s imprisonment, and called for his release. In a second video seen by Tibet Watch, Gonpo Kyi showed documents of the court’s verdict. She compares her brother’s case to that of two Han Chinese businessmen convicted of loan fraud, who were released after 10 years in prison.

Dorjee Tashi has been in prison for over 15 years for similar loan fraud charges. However, his family disputes the legitimacy of these charges, claiming that the money he borrowed was paid back on time.

Information supplied by Tibet Watch